Who Was Jesus?

by D.M. Murdock/Acharya S

In the nearly two millennia since the story of Jesus Christ began to be
circulated, millions of people have wondered, "Who is Jesus Christ?" Much ink has been spilled, and many
thousands of books have been written about this grandest of gods and men, in the quest to portray the "real
Jesus." Practically every personality type and special interest group has been able to find a reflection
of itself in Jesus, and countless people have looked to Christ as their example, inspiration and champion.
Many millions, in fact, are quite convinced that Christ is indeed the God of the universe who
came to Earth in a human body 2,000 years ago. Still others have settled into a comfortable position that
Jesus was a "nice guy" and a "great leader" or a "political rebel" who fought for the
underdog. These individuals often believe that Jesus was simply a human being, not God, but that his
enthusiastic followers added a series of fairytales to his biography after his death. A minority of others
have looked at the gospel story with a jaundiced eye and found little evidence to be convinced of either of
these two perspectives. (p. 1)

"'Holy writ' is not a historical record but a matter of political expediency."

A close examination of the texts reveals that the numerous inconsistencies and
divergences of the canonical gospels and the ancient copies often were founded upon political, sectarian
or doctrinal differences, which means that these texts are not necessarily recording "historical" events
that had occurred decades or centuries earlier. In this regard, "holy writ" becomes not a historical
record but a matter of political expediency. It is unquestionable that what has become accepted by some true
believers as dogma, i.e., the "gospel truth," is asserted by other factions to be human error.
This disparity, in fact, is at the root of the many fractures within Christ's church: For example, Protestant
versus Catholic, as well as the countless sub-sects within each major break-all have determined that
their doctrine is more accurate and authentic than the others, essentially impugning error upon
the others. Such being the case, it seems impossible to make any honest claims of "inerrancy" within
any of these factions. In addition to an inspection of textual difficulties with an eye to
detecting propaganda moves, we need to look at the nature of purported "errors" charged by one faction
upon another as well, and vice versa. Such an analysis, in fact, will reveal a significant latent fingerprint
of the Christ. (pp. 216-217)

It is because there appears to be so little honest admission—as well as, often, civil response—that many people feel put off and antagonistic toward biblical stories and
doctrines. Instead of saying, "Well now, you're right-that doesn't sound too good," the rejoinder is all too
often to attack the person making the observation. Judging by its "fruits," it seems to many people that
Christianity teaches disrespect of human beings, such that its defenders feel they can personally attack
those not convinced of the faith, addressing them with little respect and making offensive comments and
insults. Among others, the Christian teaching that people are "born in sin" appears to make fervent believers
hostile towards others. Other scriptures calling for the deaths and/or tortures of "evildoers," as well as
remarks concerning "anti-Christs" as at 1 John 4:3 or the condemnation of non-believers at Mark
16:16—categories consisting of people who do not believe in Jesus—have contributed to an atmosphere of hatred and prejudice against individuals who
may be moral and ethical but who simply cannot believe in something that may in fact be spurious and thus go
against their morality.

"With so much of our global social structure based on holy
writ of some sort or another, it is imperative that we examine thoroughly our sacred cows and not shirk from
exposing them to the bright sunlight."

With so much of our global social structure based on holy writ of some sort or
another, it is imperative that we examine thoroughly our sacred cows and not shirk from exposing them to the
bright sunlight. In consideration of the current political climate, which includes an ardent movement to
"fulfill prophecy" by bringing about Armageddon and all of the attendant "End Times" tribulations and
horrors, the issue of who Jesus was is not to be taken lightly. We should not blindly follow mummified
traditions and ancient texts that could very well prove to be misleading, misinterpreted and mythical.
Leading our lives and creating-or destroying our futures based on such texts is perilous and irresponsible.
It is paramount, therefore, that we consider the possibility that, rather than being the omnipotent
Son of God, Jesus Christ is a manmade, literary character devised for a variety of purposes that no longer
serve the greater good of humanity. (pp. 264-265)